Things are progressing fast with the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot, as Sarah Michelle Gellar shared in a recent exclusive interview with People.
Gellar expressed surprise at how quickly the reboot of the iconic series is coming together. She originally played the lead role of Buffy Summers, the titular slayer, in a role that defined her career.
“We’ve set up our offices, which means things are progressing probably faster than I’d anticipated,” Gellar, who has teamed up with Trainline for its “Ticket to Summer Travel in Europe” campaign, explained. “But it’s going to be a process, I think.”
“To do it the way it needs to be done, everyone has to be patient with all of us, because this isn’t something that [will just happen],” she added.
It was confirmed last month that a new chapter in the Buffy universe is officially underway, more than two decades after the original series ended.
This upcoming project, which is expected to receive a pilot order soon at Hulu, will introduce a new slayer while Gellar will return in a recurring role. The pilot will be directed and executive produced by Chloé Zhao, a well-known fan of the show, while Nora and Lilla Zuckerman are set to write, showrun, and executive produce.
Gellar herself will also executive produce alongside the original series’ producers Gail Berman, Fran Kuzui, and Kaz Kuzui. Dolly Parton, who served as an uncredited producer on the original Buffy series through her Sandollar Entertainment company, will be making a return as well.
Speaking about the reboot, Gellar expressed her excitement about the “idea and the group behind” the project. “I pinch myself every day when I get into these rooms, and I’m looking at Gail Berman, the Zuckermans and Chloé Zhao,” she said. “It’s an incredible group.”
Gellar also shared her surprise at collaborating with Zhao, admitting, “There was no world where I thought Chloé Zhao was going to call me and partner with me, and ask my advice on things and my opinion — especially because she hasn’t done television.”
“When she calls me and says, ‘Well, I have to defer to you,’ I’m like, ‘Wait, what?’ Those aren’t words I ever thought I would hear,” Gellar, a mother of two, added.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer ran for seven seasons from 1997 to 2003 and spawned a spinoff, Angel, which aired from 1999 to 2004. The original series featured a memorable cast, including Alyson Hannigan, Anthony Head, David Boreanaz, Nicholas Brendon, James Marsters, Eliza Dushku, Seth Green, and Michelle Tractenberg, who tragically passed away at the age of 39 last month.
As for what Gellar hopes both longtime Buffy fans and new viewers will take away from the upcoming reboot, she says, “As an actor, you just want to do work that stands the test of time, that people still enjoy, not just when it comes out, but years later, and it still is impactful for them.”
“So the fact that this show is still so impactful to the people that watched it the first time along with me, to young kids today that are just discovering it and feel like it still speaks to them, being able to bring more people to her, it’s the greatest gift an actor could ever ask for. Truly,” she added.
Filming for the Buffy reboot series is expected to begin soon. The original series is currently available for streaming in full on Hulu.
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